Blonde Redhead's last album, 2004's Misery Is a Butterfly, was overshadowed by vocalist Kazu Makino's long recovery after being trampled by a horse, and was dominated by her equestrian imagery and melancholy reflection. With Makino recovered, the band's latest is a lighter offering, but retains a sense of the transcendental. Openers 23 and Dr Strangelove fuse plangent minor chords, bustling drumming and ghostly, childlike sighs; the wonderful result sounds a bit like the classic TV theme The White Horses, as covered by the Cocteau Twins or Lush. Alas, the formula proves impossible to sustain over an album, and the band switch between various styles, travelling far from their Sonic Youth-esque roots with mixed success. Spring and By Summer Fall is too reminiscent of Status Quo's Pictures of Matchstick Men; the male-sung Publisher is a dirge. However, Silently could be an ethereal, lost Abba classic. The muddy, unfocused production adds to a sense of missed opportunity. However, 23 has more than most seventh albums' share of otherworldly pop delights.